Surgical robotic automation with tracking markers

ABSTRACT

Devices, Systems, and Methods for detecting a 3-dimensional position of an object, and surgical automation involving the same. The surgical robot system may include a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm. The end-effector, surgical instruments, the patient, and/or other objects to be tracked include active and/or passive tracking markers. Cameras, such as stereophotogrammetric infrared cameras, are able to detect the tracking markers, and the robot determines a 3-dimensional position of the object from the tracking markers.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/157,444, filed May 18, 2016, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/095,883, filed Apr. 11, 2016, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/062,707, filed on Oct. 24, 2013, which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/924,505, filed on Jun. 21, 2013, which claims priority to provisional application No. 61/662,702 filed on Jun. 21, 2012 and claims priority to provisional application No. 61/800,527 filed on Mar. 15, 2013, all of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entireties for all purposes.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to position recognition systems, and in particular, end-effector and tool tracking and manipulation during a robot assisted surgery.

BACKGROUND

Position recognition systems are used to determine the position of and track a particular object in 3-dimensions (3D). In robot assisted surgeries, for example, certain objects, such as surgical instruments, need to be tracked with a high degree of precision as the instrument is being positioned and moved by a robot or by a physician, for example.

Infrared signal based position recognition systems may use passive and/or active sensors or markers for tracking the objects. In passive sensors or markers, objects to be tracked may include passive sensors, such as reflective spherical balls, which are positioned at strategic locations on the object to be tracked. Infrared transmitters transmit a signal, and the reflective spherical balls reflect the signal to aid in determining the position of the object in 3D. In active sensors or markers, the objects to be tracked include active infrared transmitters, such as light emitting diodes (LEDs), and thus generate their own infrared signals for 3D detection.

With either active or passive tracking sensors, the system then geometrically resolves the 3-dimensional position of the active and/or passive sensors based on information from or with respect to one or more of the infrared cameras, digital signals, known locations of the active or passive sensors, distance, the time it took to receive the responsive signals, other known variables, or a combination thereof.

One problem is that the tracking sensors are typically rigidly attached to a portion of the object to be tracked and is typically not moveable on the object itself. Also, the systems typically require a plurality of markers, often four markers, to accurately determine the location of the object. Therefore, there is a need to provide improved systems and methods for recognizing the 3-dimensional position of an object, which is accurate, but may be moveable and/or provided with fewer sensors or markers, for example, to provide additional information about the object or its position.

SUMMARY

To meet this and other needs, devices, systems, and methods for determining the 3-dimensional position of an object for use with robot-assisted surgeries is provided.

According to one embodiment, a surgical robot system includes a robot having a robot base and a display, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm, the end-effector having one or more tracking markers, wherein movement of the end-effector is electronically controlled by the robot. The system further includes a camera stand including at least one camera able to detect the one or more tracking markers, wherein the robot determines a 3-dimensional position of the one or more tracking markers.

According to another embodiment, a surgical robot system includes a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm. The end-effector and/or guide tube having a plurality of tracking markers. The end-effector has a guide tube defining a curved passage therethrough which has a central axis extending along a constant radius curvature. A curved connector rod is extendable through the guide tube and has a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature equal to the constant radius curvature of the guide tube central axis. At least one camera is configured to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the end-effector and/or guide tube and the robot is configured to position the end-effector such that the central axis extends along a screw hole curved path.

According to yet another embodiment, a surgical robot system includes a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm. The end-effector and/or guide tube having a plurality of tracking markers. A curved connector rod has a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature. An arc inserter tool includes a hub and a connector arm. The hub is positionable with respect to the guide tube such that the arc inserter tool is rotatbly secured relative to the end-effector. The connector arm extends from the hub to a distal end configured to connect with the curved connector rod. At least one camera is configured to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the end-effector and/or guide tube. The robot is configured to position the end-effector with the central axis of the guide tube at a desired location, wherein rotation of the arc inserter tool moves the curved connector rod over a radial path.

According to another embodiment, a surgical robot system includes a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm. The end-effector has a guide tube with a central axis extending along a constant radius curvature. The end-effector and/or guide tube have at least one tracking marker. An instrument has at least a portion with a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature equal to the constant radius curvature of the guide tube central axis and at least one array extending from the instrument with a plurality of tracking markers attached thereto. At least one camera is configured to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the instrument and on the end-effector and/or guide tube.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overhead view of a potential arrangement for locations of the robotic system, patient, surgeon, and other medical personnel during a surgical procedure;

FIG. 2 illustrates the robotic system including positioning of the surgical robot and the camera relative to the patient according to one embodiment;

FIG. 3 illustrates a surgical robotic system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 4 illustrates a portion of a surgical robot in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a surgical robot in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 6 illustrates a surgical robot in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIGS. 7A-7C illustrate an end-effector in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 8 illustrates a surgical instrument and the end-effector, before and after, inserting the surgical instrument into the guide tube of the end-effector according to one embodiment;

FIGS. 9A-9C illustrate portions of an end-effector and robot arm in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 10 illustrates a dynamic reference array, an imaging array, and other components in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 11 illustrates a method of registration in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 12A-12B illustrate embodiments of imaging devices according to exemplary embodiments;

FIG. 13A illustrates a portion of a robot including the robot arm and an end-effector in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 13B is a close-up view of the end-effector, with a plurality of tracking markers rigidly affixed thereon, shown in FIG. 13A;

FIG. 13C is a tool or instrument with a plurality of tracking markers rigidly affixed thereon according to one embodiment;

FIG. 14A is an alternative version of an end-effector with a curved guide tube and a curved instrument extending therethrough;

FIG. 14B is an isometric view of the curved instrument of FIG. 14A;

FIGS. 15A and 15B show alternative versions of an end-effector having a curved guide tube;

FIG. 16 shows an alternative version of an end-effector having a curved guide tube;

FIGS. 17A-17 c depict a temporary tracking array assembly positioned relative to a screw head;

FIG. 18 illustrates multiple possible curved paths through a pair of screw heads;

FIGS. 19A and 19B illustrate a rotatably adjustable curved guide tube;

FIG. 20A illustrates a series of screw heads with one of the heads out of alignment with the curved screw head path and FIG. 20B shows the screw head adjusted into alignment;

FIG. 21A is a perspective view of an arc inserter tool positioning a curved rod relative to a plurality of screw heads;

FIG. 21B illustrates rotation of the arc inserter tool relative to an end-effector such that the curved rod moves along a rotation path; and

FIGS. 22A and 22B show another alternative version of an end-effector including a feedback mechanism.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is to be understood that the present disclosure is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the description herein or illustrated in the drawings. The teachings of the present disclosure may be used and practiced in other embodiments and practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms “mounted,” “connected,” “supported,” and “coupled” and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Further, “connected” and “coupled” are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings.

The following discussion is presented to enable a person skilled in the art to make and use embodiments of the present disclosure. Various modifications to the illustrated embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the principles herein can be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from embodiments of the present disclosure. Thus, the embodiments are not intended to be limited to embodiments shown, but are to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed herein. The following detailed description is to be read with reference to the figures, in which like elements in different figures have like reference numerals. The figures, which are not necessarily to scale, depict selected embodiments and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments. Skilled artisans will recognize the examples provided herein have many useful alternatives and fall within the scope of the embodiments.

Turning now to the drawing, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a surgical robot system 100 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment. Surgical robot system 100 may include, for example, a surgical robot 102, one or more robot arms 104, a base 106, a display 110, an end-effector 112, for example, including a guide tube 114, and one or more tracking markers 118. The surgical robot system 100 may include a patient tracking device 116 also including one or more tracking markers 118, which is adapted to be secured directly to the patient 210 (e.g., to the bone of the patient 210). The surgical robot system 100 may also utilize a camera 200, for example, positioned on a camera stand 202. The camera stand 202 can have any suitable configuration to move, orient, and support the camera 200 in a desired position. The camera 200 may include any suitable camera or cameras, such as one or more infrared cameras (e.g., bifocal or stereophotogrammetric cameras), able to identify, for example, active and passive tracking markers 118 in a given measurement volume viewable from the perspective of the camera 200. The camera 200 may scan the given measurement volume and detect the light that comes from the markers 118 in order to identify and determine the position of the markers 118 in three-dimensions. For example, active markers 118 may include infrared-emitting markers that are activated by an electrical signal (e.g., infrared light emitting diodes (LEDs)), and passive markers 118 may include retro-reflective markers that reflect infrared light (e.g., they reflect incoming IR radiation into the direction of the incoming light), for example, emitted by illuminators on the camera 200 or other suitable device.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a potential configuration for the placement of the surgical robot system 100 in an operating room environment. For example, the robot 102 may be positioned near or next to patient 210. Although depicted near the head of the patient 210, it will be appreciated that the robot 102 can be positioned at any suitable location near the patient 210 depending on the area of the patient 210 undergoing the operation. The camera 200 may be separated from the robot system 100 and positioned at the foot of patient 210. This location allows the camera 200 to have a direct visual line of sight to the surgical field 208. Again, it is contemplated that the camera 200 may be located at any suitable position having line of sight to the surgical field 208. In the configuration shown, the surgeon 120 may be positioned across from the robot 102, but is still able to manipulate the end-effector 112 and the display 110. A surgical assistant 126 may be positioned across from the surgeon 120 again with access to both the end-effector 112 and the display 110. If desired, the locations of the surgeon 120 and the assistant 126 may be reversed. The traditional areas for the anesthesiologist 122 and the nurse or scrub tech 124 remain unimpeded by the locations of the robot 102 and camera 200.

With respect to the other components of the robot 102, the display 110 can be attached to the surgical robot 102 and in other exemplary embodiments, display 110 can be detached from surgical robot 102, either within a surgical room with the surgical robot 102, or in a remote location. End-effector 112 may be coupled to the robot arm 104 and controlled by at least one motor. In exemplary embodiments, end-effector 112 can comprise a guide tube 114, which is able to receive and orient a surgical instrument 608 (described further herein) used to perform surgery on the patient 210. As used herein, the term “end-effector” is used interchangeably with the terms “end-effectuator” and “effectuator element.” Although generally shown with a guide tube 114, it will be appreciated that the end-effector 112 may be replaced with any suitable instrumentation suitable for use in surgery. In some embodiments, end-effector 112 can comprise any known structure for effecting the movement of the surgical instrument 608 in a desired manner.

The surgical robot 102 is able to control the translation and orientation of the end-effector 112. The robot 102 is able to move end-effector 112 along x-, y-, and z-axes, for example. The end-effector 112 can be configured for selective rotation about one or more of the x-, y-, and z-axis, and a Z Frame axis (such that one or more of the Euler Angles (e.g., roll, pitch, and/or yaw) associated with end-effector 112 can be selectively controlled). In some exemplary embodiments, selective control of the translation and orientation of end-effector 112 can permit performance of medical procedures with significantly improved accuracy compared to conventional robots that utilize, for example, a six degree of freedom robot arm comprising only rotational axes. For example, the surgical robot system 100 may be used to operate on patient 210, and robot arm 104 can be positioned above the body of patient 210, with end-effector 112 selectively angled relative to the z-axis toward the body of patient 210.

In some exemplary embodiments, the position of the surgical instrument 608 can be dynamically updated so that surgical robot 102 can be aware of the location of the surgical instrument 608 at all times during the procedure. Consequently, in some exemplary embodiments, surgical robot 102 can move the surgical instrument 608 to the desired position quickly without any further assistance from a physician (unless the physician so desires). In some further embodiments, surgical robot 102 can be configured to correct the path of the surgical instrument 608 if the surgical instrument 608 strays from the selected, preplanned trajectory. In some exemplary embodiments, surgical robot 102 can be configured to permit stoppage, modification, and/or manual control of the movement of end-effector 112 and/or the surgical instrument 608. Thus, in use, in exemplary embodiments, a physician or other user can operate the system 100, and has the option to stop, modify, or manually control the autonomous movement of end-effector 112 and/or the surgical instrument 608. Further details of surgical robot system 100 including the control and movement of a surgical instrument 608 by surgical robot 102 can be found in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/924,505, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

The robotic surgical system 100 can comprise one or more tracking markers 118 configured to track the movement of robot arm 104, end-effector 112, patient 210, and/or the surgical instrument 608 in three dimensions. In exemplary embodiments, a plurality of tracking markers 118 can be mounted (or otherwise secured) thereon to an outer surface of the robot 102, such as, for example and without limitation, on base 106 of robot 102, on robot arm 104, or on the end-effector 112. In exemplary embodiments, at least one tracking marker 118 of the plurality of tracking markers 118 can be mounted or otherwise secured to the end-effector 112. One or more tracking markers 118 can further be mounted (or otherwise secured) to the patient 210. In exemplary embodiments, the plurality of tracking markers 118 can be positioned on the patient 210 spaced apart from the surgical field 208 to reduce the likelihood of being obscured by the surgeon, surgical tools, or other parts of the robot 102. Further, one or more tracking markers 118 can be further mounted (or otherwise secured) to the surgical tools 608 (e.g., a screw driver, dilator, implant inserter, or the like). Thus, the tracking markers 118 enable each of the marked objects (e.g., the end-effector 112, the patient 210, and the surgical tools 608) to be tracked by the robot 102. In exemplary embodiments, system 100 can use tracking information collected from each of the marked objects to calculate the orientation and location, for example, of the end-effector 112, the surgical instrument 608 (e.g., positioned in the tube 114 of the end-effector 112), and the relative position of the patient 210.

In exemplary embodiments, one or more of markers 118 may be optical markers. In some embodiments, the positioning of one or more tracking markers 118 on end-effector 112 can maximize the accuracy of the positional measurements by serving to check or verify the position of end-effector 112. Further details of surgical robot system 100 including the control, movement and tracking of surgical robot 102 and of a surgical instrument 608 can be found in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/924,505, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Exemplary embodiments include one or more markers 118 coupled to the surgical instrument 608. In exemplary embodiments, these markers 118, for example, coupled to the patient 210 and surgical instruments 608, as well as markers 118 coupled to the end-effector 112 of the robot 102 can comprise conventional infrared light-emitting diodes (LEDs) or an Optotrak® diode capable of being tracked using a commercially available infrared optical tracking system such as Optotrak®. Optotrak® is a registered trademark of Northern Digital Inc., Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. In other embodiments, markers 118 can comprise conventional reflective spheres capable of being tracked using a commercially available optical tracking system such as Polaris Spectra. Polaris Spectra is also a registered trademark of Northern Digital, Inc. In an exemplary embodiment, the markers 118 coupled to the end-effector 112 are active markers which comprise infrared light-emitting diodes which may be turned on and off, and the markers 118 coupled to the patient 210 and the surgical instruments 608 comprise passive reflective spheres.

In exemplary embodiments, light emitted from and/or reflected by markers 118 can be detected by camera 200 and can be used to monitor the location and movement of the marked objects. In alternative embodiments, markers 118 can comprise a radio-frequency and/or electromagnetic reflector or transceiver and the camera 200 can include or be replaced by a radio-frequency and/or electromagnetic transceiver.

Similar to surgical robot system 100, FIG. 3 illustrates a surgical robot system 300 and camera stand 302, in a docked configuration, consistent with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Surgical robot system 300 may comprise a robot 301 including a display 304, upper arm 306, lower arm 308, end-effector 310, vertical column 312, casters 314, cabinet 316, tablet drawer 318, connector panel 320, control panel 322, and ring of information 324. Camera stand 302 may comprise camera 326. These components are described in greater with respect to FIG. 5. FIG. 3 illustrates the surgical robot system 300 in a docked configuration where the camera stand 302 is nested with the robot 301, for example, when not in use. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the camera 326 and robot 301 may be separated from one another and positioned at any appropriate location during the surgical procedure, for example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

FIG. 4 illustrates a base 400 consistent with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. Base 400 may be a portion of surgical robot system 300 and comprise cabinet 316. Cabinet 316 may house certain components of surgical robot system 300 including but not limited to a battery 402, a power distribution module 404, a platform interface board module 406, a computer 408, a handle 412, and a tablet drawer 414. The connections and relationship between these components is described in greater detail with respect to FIG. 5.

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of certain components of an exemplary embodiment of surgical robot system 300. Surgical robot system 300 may comprise platform subsystem 502, computer subsystem 504, motion control subsystem 506, and tracking subsystem 532. Platform subsystem 502 may further comprise battery 402, power distribution module 404, platform interface board module 406, and tablet charging station 534. Computer subsystem 504 may further comprise computer 408, display 304, and speaker 536. Motion control subsystem 506 may further comprise driver circuit 508, motors 510, 512, 514, 516, 518, stabilizers 520, 522, 524, 526, end-effector 310, and controller 538. Tracking subsystem 532 may further comprise position sensor 540 and camera converter 542. System 300 may also comprise a foot pedal 544 and tablet 546.

Input power is supplied to system 300 via a power source 548 which may be provided to power distribution module 404. Power distribution module 404 receives input power and is configured to generate different power supply voltages that are provided to other modules, components, and subsystems of system 300. Power distribution module 404 may be configured to provide different voltage supplies to platform interface module 406, which may be provided to other components such as computer 408, display 304, speaker 536, driver 508 to, for example, power motors 512, 514, 516, 518 and end-effector 310, motor 510, ring 324, camera converter 542, and other components for system 300 for example, fans for cooling the electrical components within cabinet 316.

Power distribution module 404 may also provide power to other components such as tablet charging station 534 that may be located within tablet drawer 318. Tablet charging station 534 may be in wireless or wired communication with tablet 546 for charging table 546. Tablet 546 may be used by a surgeon consistent with the present disclosure and described herein.

Power distribution module 404 may also be connected to battery 402, which serves as temporary power source in the event that power distribution module 404 does not receive power from input power 548. At other times, power distribution module 404 may serve to charge battery 402 if necessary.

Other components of platform subsystem 502 may also include connector panel 320, control panel 322, and ring 324. Connector panel 320 may serve to connect different devices and components to system 300 and/or associated components and modules. Connector panel 320 may contain one or more ports that receive lines or connections from different components. For example, connector panel 320 may have a ground terminal port that may ground system 300 to other equipment, a port to connect foot pedal 544 to system 300, a port to connect to tracking subsystem 532, which may comprise position sensor 540, camera converter 542, and cameras 326 associated with camera stand 302. Connector panel 320 may also include other ports to allow USB, Ethernet, HDMI communications to other components, such as computer 408.

Control panel 322 may provide various buttons or indicators that control operation of system 300 and/or provide information regarding system 300. For example, control panel 322 may include buttons to power on or off system 300, lift or lower vertical column 312, and lift or lower stabilizers 520-526 that may be designed to engage casters 314 to lock system 300 from physically moving. Other buttons may stop system 300 in the event of an emergency, which may remove all motor power and apply mechanical brakes to stop all motion from occurring. Control panel 322 may also have indicators notifying the user of certain system conditions such as a line power indicator or status of charge for battery 402.

Ring 324 may be a visual indicator to notify the user of system 300 of different modes that system 300 is operating under and certain warnings to the user.

Computer subsystem 504 includes computer 408, display 304, and speaker 536. Computer 504 includes an operating system and software to operate system 300. Computer 504 may receive and process information from other components (for example, tracking subsystem 532, platform subsystem 502, and/or motion control subsystem 506) in order to display information to the user. Further, computer subsystem 504 may also include speaker 536 to provide audio to the user.

Tracking subsystem 532 may include position sensor 504 and converter 542. Tracking subsystem 532 may correspond to camera stand 302 including camera 326 as described with respect to FIG. 3. Position sensor 504 may be camera 326. Tracking subsystem may track the location of certain markers that are located on the different components of system 300 and/or instruments used by a user during a surgical procedure. This tracking may be conducted in a manner consistent with the present disclosure including the use of infrared technology that tracks the location of active or passive elements, such as LEDs or reflective markers, respectively. The location, orientation, and position of structures having these types of markers may be provided to computer 408 which may be shown to a user on display 304. For example, a surgical instrument 608 having these types of markers and tracked in this manner (which may be referred to as a navigational space) may be shown to a user in relation to a three dimensional image of a patient's anatomical structure.

Motion control subsystem 506 may be configured to physically move vertical column 312, upper arm 306, lower arm 308, or rotate end-effector 310. The physical movement may be conducted through the use of one or more motors 510-518. For example, motor 510 may be configured to vertically lift or lower vertical column 312. Motor 512 may be configured to laterally move upper arm 308 around a point of engagement with vertical column 312 as shown in FIG. 3. Motor 514 may be configured to laterally move lower arm 308 around a point of engagement with upper arm 306 as shown in FIG. 3. Motors 516 and 518 may be configured to move end-effector 310 in a manner such that one may control the roll and one may control the tilt, thereby providing multiple angles that end-effector 310 may be moved. These movements may be achieved by controller 538 which may control these movements through load cells disposed on end-effector 310 and activated by a user engaging these load cells to move system 300 in a desired manner.

Moreover, system 300 may provide for automatic movement of vertical column 312, upper arm 306, and lower arm 308 through a user indicating on display 304 (which may be a touchscreen input device) the location of a surgical instrument or component on three dimensional image of the patient's anatomy on display 304. The user may initiate this automatic movement by stepping on foot pedal 544 or some other input means.

FIG. 6 illustrates a surgical robot system 600 consistent with an exemplary embodiment. Surgical robot system 600 may comprise end-effector 602, robot arm 604, guide tube 606, instrument 608, and robot base 610. Instrument tool 608 may be attached to a tracking array 612 including one or more tracking markers (such as markers 118) and have an associated trajectory 614. Trajectory 614 may represent a path of movement that instrument tool 608 is configured to travel once it is positioned through or secured in guide tube 606, for example, a path of insertion of instrument tool 608 into a patient. In an exemplary operation, robot base 610 may be configured to be in electronic communication with robot arm 604 and end-effector 602 so that surgical robot system 600 may assist a user (for example, a surgeon) in operating on the patient 210. Surgical robot system 600 may be consistent with previously described surgical robot system 100 and 300.

A tracking array 612 may be mounted on instrument 608 to monitor the location and orientation of instrument tool 608. The tracking array 612 may be attached to an instrument 608 and may comprise tracking markers 804. As best seen in FIG. 8, tracking markers 804 may be, for example, light emitting diodes and/or other types of reflective markers (e.g., markers 118 as described elsewhere herein). The tracking devices may be one or more line of sight devices associated with the surgical robot system. As an example, the tracking devices may be one or more cameras 200, 326 associated with the surgical robot system 100, 300 and may also track tracking array 612 for a defined domain or relative orientations of the instrument 608 in relation to the robot arm 604, the robot base 610, end-effector 602, and/or the patient 210. The tracking devices may be consistent with those structures described in connection with camera stand 302 and tracking subsystem 532.

FIGS. 7A, 7B, and 7C illustrate a top view, front view, and side view, respectively, of end-effector 602 consistent with an exemplary embodiment. End-effector 602 may comprise one or more tracking markers 702. Tracking markers 702 may be light emitting diodes or other types of active and passive markers, such as tracking markers 118 that have been previously described. In an exemplary embodiment, the tracking markers 702 are active infrared-emitting markers that are activated by an electrical signal (e.g., infrared light emitting diodes (LEDs)). Thus, tracking markers 702 may be activated such that the infrared markers 702 are visible to the camera 200, 326 or may be deactivated such that the infrared markers 702 are not visible to the camera 200, 326. Thus, when the markers 702 are active, the end-effector 602 may be controlled by the system 100, 300, 600, and when the markers 702 are deactivated, the end-effector 602 may be locked in position and unable to be moved by the system 100, 300, 600.

Markers 702 may be disposed on or within end-effector 602 in a manner such that the markers 702 are visible by one or more cameras 200, 326 or other tracking devices associated with the surgical robot system 100, 300, 600. The camera 200, 326 or other tracking devices may track end-effector 602 as it moves to different positions and viewing angles by following the movement of tracking markers 702. The location of markers 702 and/or end-effector 602 may be shown on a display 110, 304 associated with the surgical robot system 100, 300, 600, for example, display 110 as shown in FIG. 2 and/or display 304 shown in FIG. 3. This display 110, 304 may allow a user to ensure that end-effector 602 is in a desirable position in relation to robot arm 604, robot base 610, the patient 210, and/or the user.

For example, as shown in FIG. 7A, markers 702 may be placed around the surface of end-effector 602 so that a tracking device placed away from the surgical field 208 and facing toward the robot 102, 301 and the camera 200, 326 is able to view at least 3 of the markers 702 through a range of common orientations of the end-effector 602 relative to the tracking device 100, 300, 600. For example, distribution of markers 702 in this way allows end-effector 602 to be monitored by the tracking devices when end-effector 602 is translated and rotated in the surgical field 208.

In addition, in exemplary embodiments, end-effector 602 may be equipped with infrared (IR) receivers that can detect when an external camera 200, 326 is getting ready to read markers 702. Upon this detection, end-effector 602 may then illuminate markers 702. The detection by the IR receivers that the external camera 200, 326 is ready to read markers 702 may signal the need to synchronize a duty cycle of markers 702, which may be light emitting diodes, to an external camera 200, 326. This may also allow for lower power consumption by the robotic system as a whole, whereby markers 702 would only be illuminated at the appropriate time instead of being illuminated continuously. Further, in exemplary embodiments, markers 702 may be powered off to prevent interference with other navigation tools, such as different types of surgical instruments 608.

FIG. 8 depicts one type of surgical instrument 608 including a tracking array 612 and tracking markers 804. Tracking markers 804 may be of any type described herein including but not limited to light emitting diodes or reflective spheres. Markers 804 are monitored by tracking devices associated with the surgical robot system 100, 300, 600 and may be one or more of the line of sight cameras 200, 326. The cameras 200, 326 may track the location of instrument 608 based on the position and orientation of tracking array 612 and markers 804. A user, such as a surgeon 120, may orient instrument 608 in a manner so that tracking array 612 and markers 804 are sufficiently recognized by the tracking device or camera 200, 326 to display instrument 608 and markers 804 on, for example, display 110 of the exemplary surgical robot system.

The manner in which a surgeon 120 may place instrument 608 into guide tube 606 of the end-effector 602 and adjust the instrument 608 is evident in FIG. 8. The hollow tube or guide tube 114, 606 of the end-effector 112, 310, 602 is sized and configured to receive at least a portion of the surgical instrument 608. The guide tube 114, 606 is configured to be oriented by the robot arm 104 such that insertion and trajectory for the surgical instrument 608 is able to reach a desired anatomical target within or upon the body of the patient 210. The surgical instrument 608 may include at least a portion of a generally cylindrical instrument. Although a screw driver is exemplified as the surgical tool 608, it will be appreciated that any suitable surgical tool 608 may be positioned by the end-effector 602. By way of example, the surgical instrument 608 may include one or more of a guide wire, cannula, a retractor, a drill, a reamer, a screw driver, an insertion tool, a removal tool, or the like. Although the hollow tube 114, 606 is generally shown as having a cylindrical configuration, it will be appreciated by those of skill in the art that the guide tube 114, 606 may have any suitable shape, size and configuration desired to accommodate the surgical instrument 608 and access the surgical site.

FIGS. 9A-9C illustrate end-effector 602 and a portion of robot arm 604 consistent with an exemplary embodiment. End-effector 602 may further comprise body 1202 and clamp 1204. Clamp 1204 may comprise handle 1206, balls 1208, spring 1210, and lip 1212. Robot arm 604 may further comprise depressions 1214, mounting plate 1216, lip 1218, and magnets 1220.

End-effector 602 may mechanically interface and/or engage with the surgical robot system and robot arm 604 through one or more couplings. For example, end-effector 602 may engage with robot arm 604 through a locating coupling and/or a reinforcing coupling. Through these couplings, end-effector 602 may fasten with robot arm 604 outside a flexible and sterile barrier. In an exemplary embodiment, the locating coupling may be a magnetically kinematic mount and the reinforcing coupling may be a five bar over center clamping linkage.

With respect to the locating coupling, robot arm 604 may comprise mounting plate 1216, which may be non-magnetic material, one or more depressions 1214, lip 1218, and magnets 1220. Magnet 1220 is mounted below each of depressions 1214. Portions of clamp 1204 may comprise magnetic material and be attracted by one or more magnets 1220. Through the magnetic attraction of clamp 1204 and robot arm 604, balls 1208 become seated into respective depressions 1214. For example, balls 1208 as shown in FIG. 9B would be seated in depressions 1214 as shown in FIG. 9A. This seating may be considered a magnetically-assisted kinematic coupling. Magnets 1220 may be configured to be strong enough to support the entire weight of end-effector 602 regardless of the orientation of end-effector 602. The locating coupling may be any style of kinematic mount that uniquely restrains six degrees of freedom.

With respect to the reinforcing coupling, portions of clamp 1204 may be configured to be a fixed ground link and as such clamp 1204 may serve as a five bar linkage. Closing clamp handle 1206 may fasten end-effector 602 to robot arm 604 as lip 1212 and lip 1218 engage clamp 1204 in a manner to secure end-effector 602 and robot arm 604. When clamp handle 1206 is closed, spring 1210 may be stretched or stressed while clamp 1204 is in a locked position. The locked position may be a position that provides for linkage past center. Because of a closed position that is past center, the linkage will not open absent a force applied to clamp handle 1206 to release clamp 1204. Thus, in a locked position end-effector 602 may be robustly secured to robot arm 604.

Spring 1210 may be a curved beam in tension. Spring 1210 may be comprised of a material that exhibits high stiffness and high yield strain such as virgin PEEK (poly-ether-ether-ketone). The linkage between end-effector 602 and robot arm 604 may provide for a sterile barrier between end-effector 602 and robot arm 604 without impeding fastening of the two couplings.

The reinforcing coupling may be a linkage with multiple spring members. The reinforcing coupling may latch with a cam or friction based mechanism. The reinforcing coupling may also be a sufficiently powerful electromagnet that will support fastening end-effector 102 to robot arm 604. The reinforcing coupling may be a multi-piece collar completely separate from either end-effector 602 and/or robot arm 604 that slips over an interface between end-effector 602 and robot arm 604 and tightens with a screw mechanism, an over center linkage, or a cam mechanism.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, prior to or during a surgical procedure, certain registration procedures may be conducted in order to track objects and a target anatomical structure of the patient 210 both in a navigation space and an image space. In order to conduct such registration, a registration system 1400 may be used as illustrated in FIG. 10.

In order to track the position of the patient 210, a patient tracking device 116 may include a patient fixation instrument 1402 to be secured to a rigid anatomical structure of the patient 210 and a dynamic reference base (DRB) 1404 may be securely attached to the patient fixation instrument 1402. For example, patient fixation instrument 1402 may be inserted into opening 1406 of dynamic reference base 1404. Dynamic reference base 1404 may contain markers 1408 that are visible to tracking devices, such as tracking subsystem 532. These markers 1408 may be optical markers or reflective spheres, such as tracking markers 118, as previously discussed herein.

Patient fixation instrument 1402 is attached to a rigid anatomy of the patient 210 and may remain attached throughout the surgical procedure. In an exemplary embodiment, patient fixation instrument 1402 is attached to a rigid area of the patient 210, for example, a bone that is located away from the targeted anatomical structure subject to the surgical procedure. In order to track the targeted anatomical structure, dynamic reference base 1404 is associated with the targeted anatomical structure through the use of a registration fixture that is temporarily placed on or near the targeted anatomical structure in order to register the dynamic reference base 1404 with the location of the targeted anatomical structure.

A registration fixture 1410 is attached to patient fixation instrument 1402 through the use of a pivot arm 1412. Pivot arm 1412 is attached to patient fixation instrument 1402 by inserting patient fixation instrument 1402 through an opening 1414 of registration fixture 1410. Pivot arm 1412 is attached to registration fixture 1410 by, for example, inserting a knob 1416 through an opening 1418 of pivot arm 1412.

Using pivot arm 1412, registration fixture 1410 may be placed over the targeted anatomical structure and its location may be determined in an image space and navigation space using tracking markers 1420 and/or fiducials 1422 on registration fixture 1410. Registration fixture 1410 may contain a collection of markers 1420 that are visible in a navigational space (for example, markers 1420 may be detectable by tracking subsystem 532). Tracking markers 1420 may be optical markers visible in infrared light as previously described herein. Registration fixture 1410 may also contain a collection of fiducials 1422, for example, such as bearing balls, that are visible in an imaging space (for example, a three dimension CT image). As described in greater detail with respect to FIG. 11, using registration fixture 1410, the targeted anatomical structure may be associated with dynamic reference base 1404 thereby allowing depictions of objects in the navigational space to be overlaid on images of the anatomical structure. Dynamic reference base 1404, located at a position away from the targeted anatomical structure, may become a reference point thereby allowing removal of registration fixture 1410 and/or pivot arm 1412 from the surgical area.

FIG. 11 provides an exemplary method 1500 for registration consistent with the present disclosure. Method 1500 begins at step 1502 wherein a graphical representation (or image(s)) of the targeted anatomical structure may be imported into system 100, 300 600, for example computer 408. The graphical representation may be three dimensional CT or a fluoroscope scan of the targeted anatomical structure of the patient 210 which includes registration fixture 1410 and a detectable imaging pattern of fiducials 1420.

At step 1504, an imaging pattern of fiducials 1420 is detected and registered in the imaging space and stored in computer 408. Optionally, at this time at step 1506, a graphical representation of the registration fixture 1410 may be overlaid on the images of the targeted anatomical structure.

At step 1508, a navigational pattern of registration fixture 1410 is detected and registered by recognizing markers 1420. Markers 1420 may be optical markers that are recognized in the navigation space through infrared light by tracking subsystem 532 via position sensor 540. Thus, the location, orientation, and other information of the targeted anatomical structure is registered in the navigation space. Therefore, registration fixture 1410 may be recognized in both the image space through the use of fiducials 1422 and the navigation space through the use of markers 1420. At step 1510, the registration of registration fixture 1410 in the image space is transferred to the navigation space. This transferal is done, for example, by using the relative position of the imaging pattern of fiducials 1422 compared to the position of the navigation pattern of markers 1420.

At step 1512, registration of the navigation space of registration fixture 1410 (having been registered with the image space) is further transferred to the navigation space of dynamic registration array 1404 attached to patient fixture instrument 1402. Thus, registration fixture 1410 may be removed and dynamic reference base 1404 may be used to track the targeted anatomical structure in both the navigation and image space because the navigation space is associated with the image space.

At steps 1514 and 1516, the navigation space may be overlaid on the image space and objects with markers visible in the navigation space (for example, surgical instruments 608 with optical markers 804). The objects may be tracked through graphical representations of the surgical instrument 608 on the images of the targeted anatomical structure.

FIGS. 12A-12B illustrate imaging devices 1304 that may be used in conjunction with robot systems 100, 300, 600 to acquire pre-operative, intra-operative, post-operative, and/or real-time image data of patient 210. Any appropriate subject matter may be imaged for any appropriate procedure using the imaging system 1304. The imaging system 1304 may be any imaging device such as imaging device 1306 and/or a C-arm 1308 device. It may be desirable to take x-rays of patient 210 from a number of different positions, without the need for frequent manual repositioning of patient 210 which may be required in an x-ray system. As illustrated in FIG. 12A, the imaging system 1304 may be in the form of a C-arm 1308 that includes an elongated C-shaped member terminating in opposing distal ends 1312 of the “C” shape. C-shaped member 1130 may further comprise an x-ray source 1314 and an image receptor 1316. The space within C-arm 1308 of the arm may provide room for the physician to attend to the patient substantially free of interference from x-ray support structure 1318. As illustrated in FIG. 12B, the imaging system may include imaging device 1306 having a gantry housing 1324 attached to a support structure imaging device support structure 1328, such as a wheeled mobile cart 1330 with wheels 1332, which may enclose an image capturing portion, not illustrated. The image capturing portion may include an x-ray source and/or emission portion and an x-ray receiving and/or image receiving portion, which may be disposed about one hundred and eighty degrees from each other and mounted on a rotor (not illustrated) relative to a track of the image capturing portion. The image capturing portion may be operable to rotate three hundred and sixty degrees during image acquisition. The image capturing portion may rotate around a central point and/or axis, allowing image data of patient 210 to be acquired from multiple directions or in multiple planes. Although certain imaging systems 1304 are exemplified herein, it will be appreciated that any suitable imaging system may be selected by one of ordinary skill in the art.

Turning now to FIGS. 13A-13C, the surgical robot system 100, 300, 600 relies on accurate positioning of the end-effector 112, 602, surgical instruments 608, and/or the patient 210 (e.g., patient tracking device 116) relative to the desired surgical area. In the embodiments shown in FIGS. 13A-13C, the tracking markers 118, 804 are rigidly attached to a portion of the instrument 608 and/or end-effector 112.

FIG. 13A depicts part of the surgical robot system 100 with the robot 102 including base 106, robot arm 104, and end-effector 112. The other elements, not illustrated, such as the display, cameras, etc. may also be present as described herein. FIG. 13B depicts a close-up view of the end-effector 112 with guide tube 114 and a plurality of tracking markers 118 rigidly affixed to the end-effector 112. In this embodiment, the plurality of tracking markers 118 are attached to the guide tube 112. FIG. 13C depicts an instrument 608 (in this case, a probe 608A) with a plurality of tracking markers 804 rigidly affixed to the instrument 608. As described elsewhere herein, the instrument 608 could include any suitable surgical instrument, such as, but not limited to, guide wire, cannula, a retractor, a drill, a reamer, a screw driver, an insertion tool, a removal tool, or the like.

When tracking an instrument 608, end-effector 112, or other object to be tracked in 3D, an array of tracking markers 118, 804 may be rigidly attached to a portion of the tool 608 or end-effector 112. Preferably, the tracking markers 118, 804 are attached such that the markers 118, 804 are out of the way (e.g., not impeding the surgical operation, visibility, etc.). The markers 118, 804 may be affixed to the instrument 608, end-effector 112, or other object to be tracked, for example, with an array 612. Usually three or four markers 118, 804 are used with an array 612. The array 612 may include a linear section, a cross piece, and may be asymmetric such that the markers 118, 804 are at different relative positions and locations with respect to one another. For example, as shown in FIG. 13C, a probe 608A with a 4-marker tracking array 612 is shown, and FIG. 13B depicts the end-effector 112 with a different 4-marker tracking array 612.

In FIG. 13C, the tracking array 612 functions as the handle 620 of the probe 608A. Thus, the four markers 804 are attached to the handle 620 of the probe 608A, which is out of the way of the shaft 622 and tip 624. Stereophotogrammetric tracking of these four markers 804 allows the instrument 608 to be tracked as a rigid body and for the tracking system 100, 300, 600 to precisely determine the position of the tip 624 and the orientation of the shaft 622 while the probe 608A is moved around in front of tracking cameras 200, 326.

To enable automatic tracking of one or more tools 608, end-effector 112, or other object to be tracked in 3D (e.g., multiple rigid bodies), the markers 118, 804 on each tool 608, end-effector 112, or the like, are arranged asymmetrically with a known inter-marker spacing. The reason for asymmetric alignment is so that it is unambiguous which marker 118, 804 corresponds to a particular location on the rigid body and whether markers 118, 804 are being viewed from the front or back, i.e., mirrored. For example, if the markers 118, 804 were arranged in a square on the tool 608 or end-effector 112, it would be unclear to the system 100, 300, 600 which marker 118, 804 corresponded to which corner of the square. For example, for the probe 608A, it would be unclear which marker 804 was closest to the shaft 622. Thus, it would be unknown which way the shaft 622 was extending from the array 612. Accordingly, each array 612 and thus each tool 608, end-effector 112, or other object to be tracked should have a unique marker pattern to allow it to be distinguished from other tools 608 or other objects being tracked. Asymmetry and unique marker patterns allow the system 100, 300, 600 to detect individual markers 118, 804 then to check the marker spacing against a stored template to determine which tool 608, end effector 112, or other object they represent. Detected markers 118, 804 can then be sorted automatically and assigned to each tracked object in the correct order. Without this information, rigid body calculations could not then be performed to extract key geometric information, for example, such as tool tip 624 and alignment of the shaft 622, unless the user manually specified which detected marker 118, 804 corresponded to which position on each rigid body. These concepts are commonly known to those skilled in the methods of 3D optical tracking.

Straight line access to certain anatomy may be difficult due to various obstructions. For instance, a surgeon may wish to avoid a blood vessel, nerve, or tumor while accessing a pedicle. Current tracked instrument systems typically only allow straight line trajectories. Referring to FIGS. 14A-14B, an end-effector 912 which allows arbitrary constant curvature trajectories will be described. Utilizing the end-effector 912 allows a greater variety of approaches and more freedom in surgery.

FIG. 14A is a close-up view of the end-effector 902 with guide tube 904 and an instrument 908 positioned therein. The end-effector 902 has a plurality of tracking markers 906 rigidly affixed thereto, similar to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7. The tracking markers 906 may be light emitting diodes or other types of active and passive markers, such as tracking markers 118 that have been previously described. Markers 906 may be disposed on or within end-effector 902 in a manner such that the markers 906 are visible by one or more cameras 200, 326 or other tracking devices associated with the surgical robot system 100, 300, 600. The camera 200, 326 or other tracking devices may track end-effector 902 as it moves to different positions and viewing angles by following the movement of tracking markers 906.

In the present embodiment, the guide tube 904 has a curved configuration with a constant radius of curvature R1 from the proximal end 903 to the distal end 905 thereof. The guide tube 904 may be interchangeable with respect to the end-effector 902 such that various curvatures may be utilized. For example, the end-effector 902 and a plurality of guide tubes 904, each having a different radius of curvature R1, may be provided in a kit such that the surgeon may select a desired tube 904 with the desired curvature.

FIG. 14B depicts the instrument 908 (in this case, an awl) with a pair of tracking marker arrays 920 a, 920 b rigidly affixed to the instrument 908. As described elsewhere herein, the instrument 908 could include any suitable surgical instrument, such as, but not limited to, guide wire, cannula, cauterizers, a retractor, a drill, a reamer, a screw driver, an insertion tool, a removal tool, or the like. Tools such as drills or screwdrivers that must rotate about their center to function properly may be constructed with a curved solid outer shaft and a flexible inner shaft (not shown) to allow rotation around a fixed tip point despite being curved on the whole. In the illustrated embodiment, the instrument 908 includes a shaft 912 extending from a handle 910 at the proximal end 907 to a distal tip 909. The shaft 912 has a radius of curvature R2 which corresponds to the radius of curvature R1 of the guide tube 904. Similar to the guide tubes, a plurality of instruments 908, each having a different radius of curvature R2, be provided in a kit such that the surgeon may select a desired instrument 908 with the desired curvature.

Each tracking marker array 920 a, 920 b includes a plurality of posts 922 for mounting tracking markers (not shown) similar to the tracking markers 118, 804 described above. Each array 920 a, 920 b may include a linear section, a cross piece, and may be asymmetric such that the markers 118, 804 are at different relative positions and locations with respect to one another. The arrays 920 a and 920 b extend in distinct planes which facilitates more precise tracking of the orientation, i.e. the direction of curvature, of the instrument 908.

In the illustrated embodiment, the tracking arrays 920 a, 920 b are attached near the handle 910 of the instrument 908, which is out of the way of the shaft 912 and tip 909. Stereophotogrammetric tracking of the markers 118, 804 allows the instrument 908 to be tracked as a rigid body and for the tracking system 100, 300, 600 to precisely determine the position of the tip 624 and the orientation of the shaft 622 while the probe 908 is moved around in front of tracking cameras 200, 326.

Turning to FIGS. 15A-20B, another application in which curved guide tubes can be utilized will be described. Spinal fusion consists of inserting pedicle screws into the vertebral bodies to be fused then attaching connecting rods across the head of the screws. Although it has been shown that screw insertion can be facilitated using navigation and robotics, the step of placing a connecting rod across the screw heads has thus far typically been performed manually. As such, the manual placement of connecting rods can be tedious and error prone. Various methods are described herein in which a pre-bent curved rod can be used to interconnect the heads of adjacent screws, with a surgical robot used to guide the path of the rod and automate the procedure.

Referring to FIGS. 15A-15B, embodiments utilizing a robotically positioned curved guide tube 1004 a, 1004 b to guide passage of a curved rod will be described. That is, the guide tube 1004 a, 1004 b is configured such that it allows passage of a curved rod instead of a straight rod through its opening. In each illustrated embodiment, the guide tube 1004 a, 1004 b is supported by an end-effector 1002 (shown schematically) and defines a through-hole 1006 with a constant radius of curvature R3 which complements the radius of curvature of the intended curved rod. Although each illustrated through-hole 1006 has a circular configuration for a rod having a circular cross-section, the through-hole 1006 may have various configurations, for example, square, rectangular or other desired shape. Furthermore, the configuration of the through-hole 1006 does not have to match the cross-section of the rod, for example, a rod having a circular cross-section may be passed through a through-hole 1006 having a square configuration. Such a non-complementary passageway/rod combination might be less prone to seizing during rod passage. The curved guide tubes 1004 a, 1004 b may be manufactured from metal as well as non-metals, such as ceramic or PEEK, that have low-friction properties to facilitate passage of a curved rod.

FIG. 16 illustrates another alternative to a solid housing for passing curved rods. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 16, the guide tube 1004 c defines a through passage 1007 which is larger in cross-section than the intended curved rod. A plurality of linear bearings 1008 are positioned within the through passage to constrain the curved rod 1010 to follow a curved path. At least three bearings 1008 are required to constrain the rod 1010 from rotation out of the arc plane. Such a guide tube 1004 provides a greater manufacturing tolerance and may be less prone to seizing.

With each of the guide tubes 1004 a, 1004 b, 1004 c, knowledge of the required curved path is needed. To determine the required curved path, the locations of the screw heads could be used and the curved path found such that a rod with known curvature would pass through all of the screw heads. The screw head locations could be determined from planning on preoperative or intraoperative images coupled with tracking of the spine using a dynamic reference base (DRB) and a standard tracking system 100, 300, 600 and tracking of the robot, including the curved guide tubes 1004 a, 1004 b, 1004 c using an optical, electromagnetic, or other means, as described previously.

Continuously updated knowledge of the locations on the screw heads where the rod is to be delivered would allow automatic positioning of the robot where needed. However, using a single DRB to track the entire spine would not discern movement of one vertebra relative to others, which may occur when manipulating the spine during surgery after screw insertion and before connecting rods. To track such movement and ensure that the rod will pass correctly through each opening in screw heads, one method is to track the positions of each screw through which rod passage will occur using independent trackers.

Referring to FIGS. 17A-17C, after screw insertion, whether robotic or freehand, a tracking array 1021 of tracking markers 118, 804 is temporarily mounted on each screw head 1014. Separate arrays 1021 associated with each screw head 1014 allow each hole 1016 through which the rod 1010 must pass to be monitored and an algorithm implemented to find the path and the required robot position for successfully passing the curved rod 1010. The tracking array 1021 is pre-calibrated so that when mounted relative to the screw head 1014, the orientation and position of the through hole 1016 on the screw head 1014 is known relative to the array 1021. This screw-head-mounted temporary array 1021 is preferably configured such that the array is in a known position and orientation relative to the screw head 1014 regardless of whether any registration has been performed on the anatomical scan to associate the anatomical coordinate system with the tracking coordinate system.

In the illustrated embodiment, each array 1021 is supported on an array assembly 1020 configured to engage a respective screw head 1014. The array assembly 1020 includes a connector 1022, on the base of a support tube 1026, that mates in a specific position relative to the screw head 1014. Rod passage occurs in either direction, as shown by the dashed arrow in FIG. 17B. Since the entry and exit hole of the rod through the screw head 1014 does not need to be distinguished, the array connector 1022 can fit on to the screw head in one of two ways. In the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 17A-17B, the connector 1022 defines opposed planar surfaces 1024 which complement and align with planar surfaces 1015 on the screw head 1014. The configuration of the connector 1022 and the screw head 1014 are not limited to the illustrated configuration. Examples for mating surfaces between array connector 1022 and screw head 1014 may include, but are not limited to, I-shaped, circular with two sides flattened, elongated hexagonal, rectangular, hourglass-shaped, 3-pin, or pin-and-tab configurations. It is noted that the cross-section of many tulip head surgical screws is already circular with two flattened sides, making it possible to utilize existing screws with such a design for the mating connector 1022 of the tracking array assembly 1020. Since it can be useful to monitor the position of the screw head 1014 during rod 1010 insertion and up to the time when all the screws 1012 have been locked to the interconnecting rod(s) 1010, the support tube 1026 of the temporary array assembly 1020 may contain a through passage 1027 through which a locking tool (not shown) can be inserted to lock the screw head to the rod before detaching the array 1021. Although shown here for a fixed-head screw, such a design should also be effective for a variable head screw since the tracker follows the screw head, continuously monitoring the rod passage on the head. With the position of the screw heads 1014 known, the desired curved path may be determined and the guide tube 1004 a positioned with the curvature thereof extending along the desired curved path P.

To utilize such tracker arrays 1021 in a case where two vertebrae have screws inserted, the tracked hole locations and the known rod curvature would give a possible solution, however, this solution is in the plane of the drawing. An array of paths including but not limited to P₁-P₄ is possible that would satisfy the requirement that the rod pass through the holes if other planes are contemplated as illustrated in FIG. 18. Because the robot is capable of 3D positioning, it can hold a trajectory in any of these planes in alignment with any of these paths P₁-P₄.

Unlike insertion of a tap, drill, screwdriver, etc. through a straight tube, where two degrees of freedom are allowed (rotation within the tube and translation along the tube), a curved through-hole 1006 of a guide tube allows the curved rod 1010 to pass constrained to only a single degree of freedom (rod position along the curved path). Some robotic manipulator designs include only 5 degrees of freedom when positioning the end-effector 1002, which may raise some challenges when working such a curved tool. To address such, the curved guide tube assembly 1030 illustrated in FIGS. 19A-19B introduces another degree of freedom. More specifically, the guide tube assembly 1030 includes a support hub 1032 with a curved guide tube 1034 rotatably attached thereto. As such, the support hub 1032 may be rigidly connected with the end-effector (not shown), while the guide tube 1034 may be rotated relative thereto, thereby defining another degree of freedom. In the illustrated embodiment, the rotational position is set from a tick mark and dial on the hub 1032. Tracking markers 118, 804 may be attached to the guide tube 1034, but generally are not necessary on the hub 1032 since the hub 1032 is fixed to the tracked end-effector. With the guide tube's rotational position manually or automatically adjustable, positioning of the end-effector at any location along the path is enabled.

If the rotational position of the guide tube 1034 is adjusted manually, software associated with the tracking system 100, 300, 600 can indicate to the user what rotational position is needed. The user could then rotate the end-effector relative to the guide tube 1034 to the desired position and lock it there. Alternately, software could show the curved path P that is currently set according to a tracker 118, 804 on the guide tube 1034. As the user adjusts the rotational position, they would see the image of the curved tube 1034 on the software changing its orientation. The software may be configured so that if the user adjusts to a new rotational position, the end-effector is automatically repositioned so that the curve P goes through the screw holes 1016. As the user adjusts the rotational position, the robot would jump to a new position to satisfy the passing of the rod, allowing the user to switch among any number of planes such as shown in FIG. 18. For automatic adjustment, a rotational actuator could move the rotational position to the desired location. With such an adjustment mechanism, either manual or automatic, targeting software would finding mathematically the tangent to the curved path at a specific location along the path and move the end-effector into position coincident with this tangent line. The rotational mechanism would then align the arc plane appropriately so that the curve follows the intended path.

Turning to FIGS. 20A-20B, methods for passing a curved rod through three or more screws 1014 will be described. With two screws, a range of curvatures of the rod will succeed in joining screw heads, and a range of planes on which the arc defining the screw path lies will also allow the screw heads to be interconnected. However, adding a third point through which a curve must pass constrains geometry to allow only a single solution in terms of both radius of curvature and plane. Some surgical screws have variable heads, which allows slightly more flexibility in the solution for a curved rod. With tracker arrays 1021 attached to each screw head 1014, the surgeon can pivot the screw heads 1014 through their range, which may allow a rod of a particular curvature to fit that might not otherwise fit. However, it may be necessary to change to a rod of different curvature to allow the curve to pass through all the screws. Tracking each screw 1012 separately enables a procedure that facilitates passing more than two screws by interactively assisting the surgeon in screw positioning. In this method, the surgeon plans and inserts all screws, then attaches tracker arrays 1021 to each screw head 1014. The system 100, 300, 600 then calculates and indicates what radius of curvature would work to pass a curved rod through all of the screw heads 1014. If the radius of curvature of such a rod is unavailable, the system 100, 300, 600 instructs the surgeon how much they must back off or further drive one or more of the screws 1012 for the selected radius of curvature to succeed in joining the screw heads 1014. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 20A, the middle screw 1012 is too proud for the curved rod to pass through its hole 1016. The system 100, 300, 600 instructs the user exactly how many millimeters proud the screw 1012 currently is positioned. In case the screw position needs to be adjusted, it is desirable although not necessary that the screw can be turned without removing the tracking array 1021. After driving the screw deeper as illustrated in FIG. 20B, the dashed line showing the curved path P now lines up with all 3 screw heads 1014, allowing the curved rod to be successfully inserted.

Referring to FIGS. 21A-21B, methods and assemblies for positioning a curved rod in accordance with another embodiment will be described. An arc inserter tool 1100 is configured to be supported by a guide tube 606 of an end-effector 602. The illustrated end-effector 602 is similar to the that described with respect to FIGS. 7A-7C, but may have other configurations. Tracking markers 702 are associated with the end-effector 602 such that the position and orientation thereof may be tracked by a tracking system 100, 300, 600. As will be described in more detail hereinafter, the central axis of the guide tube 606 is positioned at a center of rotation for the curved connecting rod 1010.

The arc inserter tool 1100 includes a hub 1102 configured for positioning in the guide tube 606. In the illustrated embodiment, the hub 1102 slides into and locks into the end-effector tube 606, with only rotation about the end-effector tube allowed. As such, the hub 1102, and thereby the arc inserter tool 1100, is rotational relative to the end-effector 602 about the central axis of the guide tube 606. The hub 1102 may include a handle 1104 to facilitate manual rotation of the arc inserter tool 1100, but the handle may be omitted and the tool 1100 otherwise manually or automatically rotated.

A connector arm 1110 extends from a proximal end 1111 connected to the hub 1102 to a distal end 1113 configured to temporarily connect to and support the curved rod 1010. The shape and configuration of the connector arm 1110 is such that it supports the curved rod 1010 along a rotation path RP which aligns with the screw heads 1014. The rotation path RP may be determined in a manner similar to that described above. In the illustrated embodiment, the center of the rotation path RP is also the center of curvature of the rod 1010 such that the rod stays on a constant path as it is rotated. As illustrated in FIG. 21B, the arc inserter tool 1100 is initially rotationally positioned away from screw heads 1014, with the distal end 1113 of the connector arm 1110 supporting the curved rod 1010 along the rotation path RP. As the inserter tool 1100 is rotated about the hub 1102, the connector arm 1110 moves such that the curved rod 1010 travels along the rotation path RP until the curved rod 1010 is positioned within the screw heads 1014.

It is possible for the center of curvature of the rod 1010 and the center of the rotation path RP to be made coincident by controlling the robot to dynamically control the location of the center of the rotation path RP. For such a method, a tracker is placed on the tool 1100 so that as it is swung through its rotation, the tip location can be predicted and the robot can be adjusted in 5 degrees of freedom to position the tip of the tool where needed to penetrate the screw heads 1014. Knowing the position of the tracker relative to the rod tip, the system 100, 300, 600 can show, overlaid on the medical image and/or overlaid on images of the screws, the current location of the rod 1010 relative to the holes in the screw heads 1014. The surgeon could then adjust the position of the end-effector 602 to align the rod 1010 relative to the holes in the screw heads 1014.

Referring to FIGS. 22A-22B, an end-effector 1120 configured for adjustment of the path of the arc inserter tool 1100 will be described. The end-effector 1120 includes a guide tube 1122 which supports the arc inserter tool 1100. The end-effector 1120 also includes a feedback mechanism 1124, for example, a load cell, configured to provide feedback to shift the end-effector 1120 between arc planes. With such a system, the surgeon could plan to use a particular arc plane for delivering the connecting rod 1010. When the robot and tool 1100 are in position to deliver the rod 1010, the surgeon can instruct the system 100, 300, 600 to enter a plane selection mode. In the plane selection mode, when the surgeon applies force to the feedback mechanism 1124 of the end-effector 1120, the end-effector 1120 automatically adjusts positions of all axes to move to a new arc plane (e.g., switch among planes P₁-P₄ such as those shown in FIG. 18 or any number of planes that successfully pass the rod). That is, the system 100, 300, 600 would interpret an applied pulling force to the feedback mechanism 1124 of the end-effector 1120 to shift to an arc plane angled nearer than the current arc plane and an applied pushing force to shift to an arc plane angled farther away from the current arc plane (FIG. 22B). During adjustment, the user would see on the computer monitor the curved path that is being configured relative to the screws and/or anatomy.

In addition to the approaches already discussed for using the robot to position a tool about which or through which a guide tube is rotated or passed, it is also possible for the robot to rigidly interface with a curved inserter tool and perform all necessary movements to guide the tool through the screw heads. Such robotic guidance would require full 6 degrees of freedom of robotic movement to allow the end effector to move to the required location and orientation. If a 5-degree-of-freedom robot were used, the 6th degree of freedom would need to be achieved through a mechanism such as was shown in FIGS. 19A-19B, where software indicates to the user the position to which a dial must be set or this degree of freedom is handled with an additional actuator.

Different input devices could enable the surgeon to indicate to the system 100, 300, 600 how to behave. For example, forward and reverse on/off buttons or gradient (throttle) controls can be used. As the user toggles the input device in the forward position, the robot could advance the curved tool forward along the desired path. Reverse controls cause the robot to move backward along the path. Different throttle levels can indicate the speed with which to move.

Another possible drive mechanism is the feedback mechanism 1024 as described above. When a force from the feedback mechanism 1024 is sensed that is toward the forward direction along the desired path, coordinated movement proportional to the force level could occur to keep the curved rod on the desired path; similarly, reverse movement could occur when the feedback mechanism 1024 senses force toward the reverse direction along the desired path. Another option for controlling advancement of the curved rod is full autonomy; that is, the robot initiates and controls advancement of the curved rod, stopping when the rod has been inserted to the desired position.

If using an approach where a rigidly held curved tool is to be inserted robotically, the rigid interface of the rod to the robot allows other advantages. The feedback mechanism 1024 at the end-effector 1020, in addition to being a mechanism for the user to cause movement along the rod insertion path, can also serve as an indicator of whether the rod 1010 is passing through the holes correctly. If the rod misses the hole and strikes the head of the screw off-center, the load cell should sense an abnormal level of resistance to forward movement. The system 100, 300, 600 can indicate to the user that the threading of the rod through the hole may need adjustment.

In any of the above approaches to inserting a curved rod (swinging arm, curved guide tube, or fully robotically controlled insertion), a mechanism is also needed to hold the tool rigidly in a known position relative to the end effector and then to allow release of the rod from the inserter tool. In the case of a rod passed through a curved tube, the diameter of the tool holding the rod should be the same diameter as the rod itself so that both can slide through the guide while remaining interconnected. It may be feasible for this connection to be a solid weld or single formed part that is cut apart with rod cutters after insertion. Such an approach would allow for the same part to be used for any number of levels since the rod is naturally cut to the required length. In the case of the fully robotically controlled approach or the robotically positioned swinging arm, the tool holding the rod could be larger diameter than the rod, and so any of the common quick-release or collared holders could be used.

Although several embodiments of the invention have been disclosed in the foregoing specification, it is understood that many modifications and other embodiments of the invention will come to mind to which the invention pertains, having the benefit of the teaching presented in the foregoing description and associated drawings. It is thus understood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed hereinabove, and that many modifications and other embodiments are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. It is further envisioned that features from one embodiment may be combined or used with the features from a different embodiment described herein. Moreover, although specific terms are employed herein, as well as in the claims which follow, they are used only in a generic and descriptive sense, and not for the purposes of limiting the described invention, nor the claims which follow. The entire disclosure of each patent and publication cited herein is incorporated by reference, as if each such patent or publication were individually incorporated by reference herein. Various features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the following claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A surgical robot system comprising: a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm, the end-effector having a guide tube defining a curved passage therethrough, the curved passage having a central axis extending along a constant radius curvature, the end-effector and/or guide tube having a plurality of tracking markers; a curved connector rod having a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature equal to the constant radius curvature of the guide tube central axis such that the curved connector rod is extendable through the guide tube; and at least one camera able to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the end-effector and/or guide tube, wherein the robot is configured to position the end-effector such that the central axis extends along a screw hole curved path.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the curved passage is defined by a curved through hole extending through the guide tube.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the through hole has a configuration which complements the cross-sectional shape of the curved connector rod.
 4. The system of claim 2, wherein the through hole has a configuration distinct from the cross-sectional shape of the curved connector rod.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the curved passage is defined by a plurality of linear bearings positioned within the guide tube.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured to calculate the screw hole curved path.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the camera is configured to track tracking marker arrays temporarily attached to target screw heads and to calculate the screw hole curved path based on the tracked tracking marker arrays.
 8. The system of claim 7, wherein the system is configured to direct adjustment of one or more of the target screws such that the screw head thereof matches the screw hole curved path.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the guide tube is rotationally adjustable relative to the end-effector to provide an additional degree of freedom in aligning the guide tube central axis extends with the screw hole curved path.
 10. A surgical robot system comprising: a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm, the end-effector having a guide tube with a longitudinal central axis, the end-effector and/or guide tube having a plurality of tracking markers; a curved connector rod having a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature; an arc inserter tool comprising a hub and a connector arm, the hub positionable with respect to the guide tube such that the arc inserter tool is rotatably secured relative to the end-effector, the connector arm extending from the hub to a distal end configured to connect with the curved connector rod; and at least one camera able to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the end-effector and/or guide tube; wherein the robot is configured to position the end-effector with the central axis of the guide tube at a desired location, wherein rotation of the arc inserter tool moves the curved connector rod over a radial path.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein the connector arm is configured such that the radial path has a first radius equal to the radius of the constant radius curvature.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the desired location is spaced from a target screw path by a distance equal to the first radius.
 13. The system of claim 10, wherein the arc inserter tool is configured for manual rotation relative to the end-effector.
 14. The system of claim 10, wherein the robot is configured to control rotation of the arc inserter tool relative to the end-effector.
 15. A surgical robot system comprising: a robot having a robot base, a robot arm coupled to the robot base, and an end-effector coupled to the robot arm, the end-effector having a guide tube with a central axis extending along a constant radius curvature, the end-effector and/or guide tube having at least one tracking marker; an instrument having at least a portion with a centerline extending along a constant radius curvature equal to the constant radius curvature of the guide tube central axis and at least one array extending from the instrument with a plurality of tracking markers attached thereto; and at least one camera able to detect the plurality of tracking markers on the instrument and on the end-effector and/or guide tube.
 16. The system of claim 15, wherein the robot determines the position of the instrument relative to the guide tube.
 17. The system of claim 15, wherein the robot positions the end-effector such that the guide tube guides movement of the instrument over a non-linear path.
 18. The system of claim 15, wherein the instrument has two arrays extending therefrom with each array extending in a different plane.
 19. The system of claim 15, wherein the guide tube is removably supported with respect to the end-effector.
 20. The system of claim 19, including multiple guide tubes each with a different constant radius of curvature and a complementary instrument for each guide tube. 